Women of Afghanistan Push Equality on the Eve of Runoff Presidential Election

Afghan women’s groups Thursday held a press conference announcing that both of the presidential front-runners had signed a six-point petition for women’s rights. The news comes on the eve of the nation’s runoff elections for the presidency, which are being held tomorrow. Initiated by 117 women-led organizations, the petition calls for women’s empowerment with the goals of equality in education and leadership and an end to violence against women.

A runoff election for the presidency will take place tomorrow in Afghanistan after the first election on April 5 failed to earn any candidate running over 50% of the vote. Abdullah Abdullah, Afghanistan’s former Foreign Minister, and Ashraf Ghani, former Finance Minister and World Bank economist, will compete.